People all over the nation are in an uproar. That’s because “Big Brother” is no longer fiction… it’s reality. Everything you do as a “free” member of society is being aggressively monitored. At the end of last week, yet another questionable surveillance report was leaked about a top-secret project gone rogue. Known as PRISM, the program gave the NSA instructions to scoop up millions of phone, email and other similar records. This type of consistent surveillance is naturally spurring a lot of fear. And part of the reason is that the politics behind why are unclear – that is, if you refuse to believe Obama has a sinister agenda to control the nation in every facet of life. But the people who are most upset are the people who’ve been most affected by the government’s ruthless invasion of privacy – the press. Of course, conservative media outlets bash Obama for every move he makes, even when he breathes incorrectly (maybe Floyd and I are guilty of that too sometimes). But seldom have we seen liberal media completely turn on the president. He’s been their knight in shining armor ever since the 2008 primary. But the press isn’t turning the other cheek to this slap in the face – especially now that Obama has shown brazen indifference to who the government targets. From the Editorial Board of the New York Times: “The administration has lost all credibility. Mr. Obama is proving the truism that the executive branch will use any power it is given and very likely abuse it.” From Eugene Robinson, of the Washington Post: “The Obama administration has no business rummaging through journalists’ phone records, perusing their e-mails and tracking movements in an attempt to keep them from gathering news.” Glenn Greenwald at the Guardian: “Accusing James Rosen of committing crimes – for basic reporting – may be the most dangerous thing the Obama DOJ has done yet.” Jon Stewart, Daily Show, impersonating Obama: “What was that day I found out that incredibly powerful arm of the government may be using its powers for coercive political purposes? Well uuhhhhhh… Let’s see… oh well the beer summit with Reverend Wright and Bill Aires was on Wednesday, Thursday was spent randomly listening in on American phone conversations and firing drone missiles, so where was I when I heard about the IRS news? I was at the mosque praying… so yeah Friday. I think it was Friday…” Even Hardball’s Chris Matthews (you know, the guy who publicly admitted he gets a tingle up his leg whenever the president speaks): “For anybody to run around in Washington and say ‘We don’t run the IRS,’ or ‘We can’t control the Justice Department, and ‘I’m recusing myself,’ the people think ‘The steering wheel doesn’t control the car anymore’.” And those are just a few examples. There are, of course, many more. And along with their about-face on Obama, many of the aforementioned publications are also starting to compare Obama to the likes of George W. Bush and his extreme surveillance measures. But Bush Looks Like a Boy Scout in Comparison The Obama administration’s agenda against journalistic freedom is actually not all that similar to Bush’s. It’s much more radical. Seriously, it’s a bit Orwellian, wouldn’t you say? Bush battled to find a balance between national security and personal liberty. And he faced criticism – deservedly – for his NSA eavesdropping program and CIA secret prison camps. But, there’s a striking difference between the world we live in today and the world during Bush’s presidency. In Bush’s days we were battling a war in Iraq and hunting Bin Laden. Today, the scale of terrorism has lessened, but the monitoring is tremendously more aggressive. Consider Fox News reporter James Rosen… He was simply compiling research on the mounting nuclear threats coming out of North Korea. When government surveillance of Rosen was exposed, the DOJ claimed he was a potential “aider, abettor and co-conspirator,” and that he at the very least could leak sensitive information. The government also monitored every phone call and email coming from reporters at the Associated Press for the exact same reasons… except that their research was on a failed terror plot in Yemen. Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t the role of a journalist to investigate and break news? A “free press” shouldn’t face such scrutiny from the government unless it’s adamant about controlling the flow of news being reported. Unlikely Allies Freedom of the press and freedom of the people are issues that typically splinter ideological alliances across the House and Senate. But the recent controversies have created a political melding in Washington. I don’t think we’re going to see the liberal media completely abandon its love for Obama, but I do believe we’re witnessing an awakening. The bottom line is this – whether you share the same ideological perspective as the president or not, what’s happening right now in Washington is uniting us all against a corrupt system that’s downright scary. Your eyes on the Hill, Marty B Martin Biancuzzo
Posted on: Tue, 11 Jun 2013 21:52:06 +0000
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